The Indian contingent had a splendid Commonwealth Games in Birmingham as they ended in fourth position in terms of medals tally and finished with 61 medals despite shooting and archery not being there at the games. There were plenty of youngsters who caught the eye at the Birmingham Games and one of them was young pugilist Nitu Ghanghas. The youngster from Bhiwani, India’s mini Cuba won the first boxing medal for the Indian contingent in Birmingham.
Nitu who represented India in Minimumweight category in boxing defeated 2019 World Championship bronze medallist, England’s very own Demie-Jade Resztan in the finals. The Indian pugilist almost obliterated her opponent and won the bout 5-0 with unanimous vote of the judges. This was her first Commonwealth Games and to win a Gold medal by dominating her entire weight category proves that the future is really bright for the youngster.
After the final bout, Nitu was very thankful for the support that she received from the people of India and wanted to dedicate her medal to them. She was also grateful for the support shown by the Government of India and Sports Authority for their constant effort in providing the best facilities for the Indian contingent. She then thanked her coaches and family members and ended up paying her respect to the National Center of Excellence in Rohtak where she trained long and hard in the build up to the Commonwealth Games.
“I’m so happy to win this gold medal. I want to dedicate this medal to the people of my country. I want to thank the Govt of India, SAI, and BFI for all the support. I’d also like to thank my coaches & my family members as because of their support I was able to win this gold medal. Thank you to NCOE Rohtak too where I had trained for many years,” Nitu said after beating Resztan in the finals and winning the Gold for India.
Nitu Ghanghas kickstarted the flow of medals for India as Amit Panghal and World Champion Nikhat Zareen followed the youngster with a couple of more Gold medals. While Sagar Ahlawat remained the only boxer from India who reached the finals but had to settle for silver after he lost the gold medal match against England’s Delicious Orie in the Men’s 92 kg category.
